At today’s Foreign Office Questions session, a number of Labour parliamentarians asked questions relating to LFI campaigns, including UK support for Israeli-Palestinian people-to-people coexistence funding and Iranian support for terrorist proxies.
LFI chair Jon Pearce asked: “In 2020, the US committed £250 million to support peace building and Palestinian economic development. Will the Minister consider how we can work with our partners in the US, using our world-leading development expertise and our experience in conflict resolution in Northern Ireland, to take a lead in this vital work?”
To which Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer asked: “My hon. Friend asks an important question. Peace building at a civil society level has an important role to play in trying to resolve this conflict. I will write to him with details of our plans.”
Later, Mansfield MP Steve Yemm asked: “What update can the Minister give us on UK support for the International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace? Will the Government convene a summit of international partners to ensure that civil society is at the heart of peace building in the coming years in the region?”
To which the Minister replied: “I refer my hon. Friend to my previous answer. I will also write to him with further details of what we will do.”
Earlier in the session, Mid Derbyshire MP Jonathan Davies MP asked: “Iran’s malign activity and support for its proxies is destabilising the middle east. Does the Minister agree that this must end, and will he say a little more about what steps he is taking?”
To which the Minister replied: “I do agree. In all of our efforts in the region, we are clear that Hamas and the other Iranian proxies that are doing so much to destabilise the region must stop. We are working with our allies to that effect, including by reviewing new measures that we can take.”
